Kamwi addresses WHO Assembly Edson Haufiku Friday, May 30, 2014 - 08:00 Health Namibia has seen a rapid scale-up of both anti-retroviral and preventative treatment against mother-to-child transmission of HIV in the last decade, which has resulted in 97% of babies born from HIV- positive mothers being born negative. According to Health and Social Services minister Richard Kamwi, who was addressing the 67th session of the World Health Assembly in Geneva this week, infections have been reduced by 50%, while mother-to-child transmission has decreased from 32% down to 4%. In addition, Kamwi informed the assembly that Namibia has consistently experienced a decline in the number of tuberculosis (TB) cases and has maintained a treatment success rate of 85%. He cited that between 2008 and 2013, TB cases dropped by 21%, while TB and HIV co-infection rates also declined from 59% down to 45%. “However, the challenge related to multidrug-resistant (MDR) TB still remains. Therefore, this calls for continued technical support from WHO,” Kamwi said. He added that Namibia is one of four Southern Africa countries with a high potential to eliminate malaria, which has seen a decline in both malaria incidences and mortality have declined significantly since 2001. As a result, Namibia is now in a pre-elimination phase and has successfully met the MDG Goal 6. “Maternal and child health is also one of the key priorities on our health agenda. As a result, partnerships between the Ministry of Health and Social Services, the European Union, and WHO has been established to maximise progress, complement our national efforts and accelerate the achievements of MDG Goals 4 and 5,” the minister explained. Shifting his focus to other health focus concern areas, Kamwi said Namibia is experiencing challenges related to the rise in non-communicable diseases (NCDs) especially, cervical, prostate and breast cancers. As a result, Kamwi said Namibia has decided to introduce the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine against cervical cancer, while urging the WHO to continue providing technical support in this regard. In conclusion, Kamwi recommitted Namibia’s aim of achieving Universal Health Coverage to ensure that her citizens have access to free basic health care services. “Namibia remains committed to the WHO health reforms. We believe WHO must continue to address the health challenges of the 21st century of its member states. In this regard, Namibia commends the WHO director general, Dr Margaret Chan for her quality and exemplary leadership,” Kamwi concluded.
Posted on: Wed, 04 Jun 2014 07:34:22 +0000
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